The Love That Left Them Lonely
by American1776
Summary: An alternate universe where Pam and Roy end up getting married, leaving Jim on his own. Each chapter begins with Jim's point of view, then goes to Pam's. This is my first fan fiction, and I'm not the best author. Please review! :)
1. Plastic Smiles and Wedding Bells

CHAPTER ONE: _Plastic Smiles and Wedding Bells_

"Morning, guys"

Jim entered the office again, with a fake smile plastered on his face. He avoided looking at the receptionist, whom he had loved so dearly before he had left. He couldn't believe that she had actually gone through with the wedding, and yet, he knew in the back of his mind that she had to marry Roy; it still hurt to think, though, that he loved her with everything he had, and she couldn't even bother to think twice about how he would feel about her marrying a different man.

He sat down at his usual spot, right near Pam's desk. As usual, he stole glances at her the whole day. Instead of going to her desk and chatting over some candy, he focused on his work the whole day. Dwight managed to go the whole day without getting pranked by Jim and Pam at some point. The office seemed calm and ordinary, which signaled that something was wrong.

At the end of the day, Jim saw a sight that crushed his heart: Roy came upstairs with a ring on his finger, and he and Pam left for the day. Jim couldn't take it anymore. He went to his manager, Michael, and strung together the saddest chain of words he had encountered:

"Can I move my desk? Like, to the Annex?"

Michael, being his normal self, taunted Jim. He joked about Jim's desk mate, Dwight, until Jim finally snapped.

"Enough jokes. Can I move my desk or not?"

Michael stared at him. Never had Jim been this harsh to him.

"Yeah, sure thing…"

With that, Jim went back to his desk, gathered all his things, and went to the opposite side of his workplace. Once he had located an empty desk, he placed all his items there. This would be his new second home.

Jim got in his car and left. He went back to his apartment and collapsed on his bed. The love of his life had just slipped through his fingers, and he did nothing about it. He couldn't believe that Pam was really gone. How would he continue with his life? How would he manage to go to work every day and see her with Roy, happily married? Jim knew he was being selfish, but he couldn't help it; he was near tears by the time he had managed to get to sleep.

All he could think about was how happy she was; how she must have had the time of her life at the wedding that he didn't attend; how great her life was at home with her husband that she loved. Jim was envious of Roy, but also furious. How could he be so terrible to Pam, and yet she still stayed with him?

He was miserable. But at least she was happy.

Pam was far from happy. The wedding had gone horribly wrong; when Pam walked down the aisle, Roy was drunk. When it was time for them to say their vows, Roy couldn't get one sentence out without stuttering. Before he could finish, he turned around and threw up all over his best man, Darryl. During the reception, Roy was constantly stumbling, relying on Pam for support. Finally, Pam snapped. She went outside to the back of the church and sobbed for what felt like an hour. She just couldn't believe that what was supposed to be the best day of her life could go so horribly wrong.

When she returned to the office, everyone seemed to treat her differently; she seemed to be held to a higher standard, and she didn't want to find out what would happen if she failed to be good enough. The worst part, though, was all the questions.

"So, when are you and Roy planning on having a baby?"

"Are you guys going to move into a bigger house?"

"So what's next with Mr. and Mrs. Roy Anderson planning next?"

Pam couldn't get over the fact that she was now Mrs. Anderson. She was hesitant about taking Roy's last name, but he eventually talked her into it.

"C'mon, babe. Do it for me…"

That's all it took. Pam took a look at her life. She was becoming a pushover, but whenever she tried to do something, Roy would just scoff at her and walk away. Pam couldn't stand the type of person she was becoming, but seemed to be stuck with nothing she could do about it.

When she returned to the office after the wedding, she was afraid about how Jim would react. He had planned to travel over the time of her wedding, but instead stayed in Scranton. That made it worse for Pam when he gave her back the RSVP she had sent out, with the box labeled, "unfortunately will be unable to attend" checked in black ink. Her eyes welled up with tears as Jim walked back to his desk.

Pam got there before Jim, which happened fairly often. She opened up a game of Solitaire on her computer, and waited for Jim to come in.

He looked fine. She was thrilled to see that she wouldn't lose her best friend over the situation. It wasn't until 10:30 that she noticed something was wrong; Jim hadn't looked at her the entire time her was working. He seemed focused and attentive to his work, which was unusual for Jim. He hadn't taken a trip to her desk to talk the whole morning, and when he did find his way there, it was simply to make copies (which he did, instead of asking Pam).

Had she blown it? Had she wrecked her friendship with Jim just to marry a man she wasn't sure she even loved? It couldn't be. Maybe Jim was just having a bad day, and didn't want to talk. He hadn't even pulled any pranks on Dwight; he obviously wasn't feeling like himself.

 _Maybe he's sick or something…_ Pam thought to herself. However, she knew that wasn't true.


	2. Phone Calls and Yogurt

CHAPTER TWO: _Phone Calls and Yogurt_

Jim strode into the office as though his heart wasn't broken the next day. Once again, he avoided eye contact with the receptionist. He passed his old, empty desk and continued to the Annex. [AN: I will be capitalizing Annex as I see it as a proper noun. I know that's probably not correct…] He tried to act as though it was just another day at work, but sitting next to Kelly made that difficult. She asked his so many questions:

"Hey, Jim! When did you move back here? Is it because of Pam?" Kelly had almost supernatural powers when it came to relationships, so she managed to piece together what had happened with Jim and Pam. "You **so** should have gone to her wedding! It was like, the most dramatic wedding I've ever seen." At this point, Jim didn't know about Roy's mishap, so he was confused.

"What do you mean, dramatic?" he asked Kelly. This, he soon realized, was a mistake.

"Well, first, Pam's dress was like, so not for her. She wore a mermaid dress, when…" Jim wasn't listening.

"Cut to the dramatic part, please…" he asked Kelly.

"Oh, yeah, right," she responded. "So Roy got totally drunk before the service, and I heard Darryl say it's because he was like, super nervous. Then, after Pam said her vows, (which were amazing, by the way), it was Roy's turn. He was stuttering a bunch and then, he threw up all over Darryl. Oh, and Pam was like, totally almost crying."

Jim was in awe; maybe if the wedding went too poorly, Pam would have bad memories with Roy, which would lead to a divorce. This seemed ridiculous. After all, Pam and Roy had been engaged for so long, they couldn't break up now, especially not for Jim. However, he could dream.

At lunch, Jim went to go buy a soda from the vending machine, when he saw Pam eating her mixed berry yogurt. He immediately turned around, hoping she hadn't seen him. Jim then decided that his lunch could wait another hour. He couldn't stand the thought of seeing Pam again.

When he returned to his desk, Kelly started blabbing on about some guy she met at a bar. Meanwhile, Jim was looking online for jobs in the area. He couldn't stand the idea of having to pass Pam every day, to have to see your yogurts in the fridge, or even to know that she was a few walls away.

"Help Wanted: Customer Service Representative, entry level full-time job. Salary Negotiable. Call 1-570-555-0983"

He rushed outside, where he called the number.

"Great! I'll see you on Monday," he said, after he hung up the phone on one of the most important calls of his life.

In only three days, he would never return to Dunder Mifflin Paper Company again.

When Pam walked into the office, she noticed that Jim's desk was clear. All that remained was his computer and his desk chair. She wondered if he had quit: she saw him walking into Michael's office the night before. These suspicions were proved wrong when Jim walked into the office two minutes later. Instead of greeting the office with a smile, he seemed to hurry towards the Annex. He seemed to be making a point not to look at anyone, but instead at the door.

 _Why is he going to the Annex?_ Pam wondered. She resolved to ask Michael about it later. In the mean time, she had just received a fax from corporate stating that all employees from the Scranton branch would have to take another seminar. After more reading, she found that it was about another of Michael's jokes: once again, racism. Pam decided that the fax would be a good way to go to Michael without seeming desperate.

"Hey, Michael? You got another fax from corporate," Pam told him.

"Lemme see that," Michael said. After examining the document, he seemed outraged. "What? My bit on Indians was hilarious! Wasn't it, Pam?"

Pam, being used to Michael's inappropriate humor, smiled faintly. She then asked, "By the way, why is Jim all the way in the Annex now?"

Michael simply said, "I don't know. He said he wanted to move there, and he seemed serious, so I let him. It's probably part of some prank he's pulling on Dwight."

Pam knew why he moved, and it wasn't because of a prank.

She went to the break room to have a snack and to clear her mind. The entire time, Pam was thinking solely on how to talk to Jim about this. He'd have to confront her eventually. She heard footsteps outside the door, and looked up from her yogurt; she saw a glimpse of Jim, walking briskly away from her. It was that moment that Pam knew she had screwed up. He wouldn't even go into the same room as her.

When she returned to her desk, she devised a plan. On Monday, she would talk to Jim about what was going on. She wrote a few lines in her notebook about what she was going to say, and then doodled for a while.

"Hey babe, you ready?" Pam looked up and saw her husband. She worried when she realized that just the sound of his voice made her flesh crawl. It must have been something else- a draft, maybe? It couldn't have been hearing her husband's voice. Why would she be engaged to him for so long if she didn't love him?

At home, she thought more about what she was going to say to Jim.

The only words that she could think of were _I lov_ e _you._


	3. Memories and Copies

**CHAPTER THREE** : Memories and Copies

The days seemed slower to Jim as his last days drew nearer. He sat in the Annex, listening to Kelly ramble on again, but he tried to not listen and just think about his new job; he would be sitting in a small cubicle, surrounded by people doing the exact same thing as him. _Thrilling,_ Jim thought to himself. But it was better than being here, seeing Pam and Roy every day. On Wednesday, he heard something from the front of the office; it was Pam and Roy arguing about something.

"You've gone out with your 'work buddies' more than you've stayed home with me! We **are** married, remember?" he heard Pam yell.

"C'mon, babe, we-"

"No. You know what? Have fun with your friends!"

He looked around the corner and heard Roy walk back to the Warehouse. Jim's face stretched into a small smirk. He knew it was terrible, but it gave him and Pam a chance.

But it wouldn't. Jim was leaving, and Pam wasn't; even if she and Roy didn't work out, Jim was going to be gone in a few days' time. He would still be in the area, but the purpose of leaving Dunder Mifflin was to get away from Pam. He decided that he wouldn't try to contact Pam. In fact, he decided to try to erase her from his life. Maybe then he would be happy again.

On the day of the wedding, Jim got drunk. He tried to forget his whole career at Dunder Mifflin, especially Pam: her curly red hair, her perfect white sneakers, and her gorgeous smile. Jim couldn't believe that she would choose a jerk like Roy over her. Jim remembered perfectly the day that Pam came to work at the office…

"Hey, everybody, we have a new receptionist," Michael yelled as he exited his small office.

"It's a shame about Margaret; she was a good girl," Phyllis said from her desk. Margaret was the old receptionist, but had to leave because she got too old to hold the position.

"Well I'm sure you'll like this girl **way** better than old Margie," Michael continued. "She starts on Monday."

Jim hardly looked up from his work; he didn't really care that there would be another receptionist. He didn't plan to work here long anyway.

The rest of the week went by as usual; the sales were down by 4%, but computers had become more and more popular, so they had to expect a decline. Jim tried his best to earn his commissions, but fewer and fewer people wanted to purchase paper now.

The rest of the office seemed to be buzzing about the new girl, but Jim tried to ignore it. He still really didn't care.

The minute the new girl walked into the office on Monday, Jim cared.

* * *

Pam was more distracted than ever at the office.

"Pam!" shouted Stanley. She broke her gaze at her untouched game of Solitaire.

"Oh, yeah, Stanley?" She had been thinking about how to approach Jim the whole day, but she still was at a loss for words.

"I said I needed two copies of this," Stanley said, with a hint of irritation in his voice. Pam took the paper from Stanley and put it in the copier. When they were done, Stanley snatched up his copied and went back to his desk.

Pam hadn't seen Jim all day, which made it even harder to think about what to say to him.

 _Maybe I should wing it,_ thought Pam. _Just go up to him and tell him exactly what I'm thinking._ She sat down at her desk, only to be interrupted seven minutes later by her husband Roy.

"Baby, I was thinking, maybe we could go out to lunch or something," he asked her. "I feel bad about last night…"

Pam's mind immediately went back to the conversation they had last night. She couldn't believe that Roy was trying to make it up to her by taking her to lunch.

"Um, no thanks, I packed a lunch for today," she told his without even looking at him.

"But baby, come on. We can go to that seafood place you like. I'll even let you order-"

"Roy, I said no," Pam told him in an assertive voice. Roy looked at her in a puzzled manner.

"Are you okay, baby?"

"Yeah," Pam said, aching to finally get this off her chest. "I'm just finally standing up for myself. I said no, so that means no. I don't want to go to lunch with you, and that's final. I don't even want to go ho-" Pam tried to stop herself, but it was too late.

"What was that?" asked Roy. Pam knew perfectly well that Roy knew perfectly well how that sentence would have ended.

"Um, nothing," Pam said quietly, turning back to her computer.

 _Crap! What should I say?_ Pam asked herself. She needed to find a cover, and fast.

"I was just saying…" Pam began. "Saying that… I don't want to go to… Um…" she couldn't think of anything. "Not even House of Noodles!" House of Noodles was a Chinese restaurant near the office.

Roy looked at her, not even knowing what to say about the conversation. So, he didn't; he walked away, back to the Warehouse, Pam guessed.

And Jim saw the whole thing.


	4. Uproar and Phone Calls

**CHAPTER FOUR:** Uproar and Phone Calls

Two more days.

Jim only had two days at the office left. He still hadn't told anyone about his leaving; he didn't want them to ask why he was leaving. The only person he told was Michael, and he made Michael **swear** not to tell a single person at the office. So, Jim continued his life at the office as if everything was normal. He still avoided Pam, but he didn't mind talking to the other people at the office. Phyllis was nice because she never really asked questions; Jim guessed she knew why he was acting differently.

After the fight that Jim witnessed, he realized how unhappy Pam was in her relationship. He saw the look in Roy's eyes whenever he saw Pam; Roy definitely loved Pam, but the feeling was not mutual. Jim had known Pam for a while, and he knew she was unhappy. She sat alone in the break room whenever she went in there, which Jim couldn't help but feel guilty about. Jim was the one who always accompanied her when she was eating, but now he ate at his desk every day.

His new job was exciting for him- he would be leaving his old, familiar life in search of a new one. However, he felt a stab of guilt when he heard Michael rumbling out of his office as Jim went to make a copy.

"Okay guys, how about Monday morning we all go out to lunch. Whaddya say, huh? Anybody? How about you, Jim? Oh, wait, I forgot you're leaving…"

"Wait, Jim's leaving?" asked Pam, worry evident through the way she spoke.

"How come you didn't tell us?" Oscar inquired.

"Yeah, Jim, why didn't you tell us?" repeated Meredith.

"I bet he's leaving because of Pam," Dwight added. In a mimicking tone, he turned to Jim and said, "He can't believe that not everybody loves him, can you Jim.

Jim tried to stay calm about the subject, but it was difficult when voices were shouting from all around him. Even Kelly came out to see what the noise was about, and immediately turned to Jim.

"You're leaving, and you didn't even tell me? We sit, like, right next to each other."

"Woah, woah, woah, you guys. Calm down- he found a different job," Michael explained. "It's not because of Pam, Dwight." Dwight scoffed, but didn't say anything when he saw the way Michael was looking at him.

"Wow, Jim," Kevin said, seeming to spit out the words. "You're just too good for us, aren't you?"

Upon hearing this, Angela piped in. "He obviously found a job better than here, Kevin. It's not hard to do so."

"So where are you going, Jim?" Phyllis asked. She seemed to be the only one who wasn't mad at Jim for leaving.

"Well actually," Jim explained, "I'm um… going to be a salesman again…"

This caused more uproar.

"Alright, alright, alright, everybody stay calm. If I hear anybody else talking about Jim leaving, they're fired," Michael shouted.

"Michael, you can't do that. I've said this a million times: you need a reason to fire somebody," said a nasal, monotone voice.

"Nobody asked you, Toby!"

Jim, while Toby and Michael were arguing, quietly grabbed his jacket and walked out the door. He couldn't believe that Michael had told everyone about his leaving. He had been quiet for so long, but Jim knew upon telling him that Michael would let it slip sometime. Jim had just hoped that it would be to a smaller group of people. Jim checked the time- it was only 4:30. He hoped that it was close enough to closing time for it to go unnoticed. As he got in his car and drove away, only one thought kept him going:

 _I only have one more day…_

 **:::::**

" _Hey, it's Roy. Leave a message."_

Pam finally threw her phone in exasperation. She had tried to call Roy countless times, but he wouldn't ever respond. As soon as she had said that she would rather not return home, Roy had gone back to where they lived, packed his things, and left. Pam had no idea where he was, or what he was doing there.

 _Maybe I can be friends with Jim again,_ thought Pam. With Roy out of the picture, it was possible for her friendship with Jim to flourish again.

 _No, I shouldn't be thinking like this. My husband just left, and I have no idea where he is. I shouldn't be looking at the bright side of things._ Pam told herself. But those thought just continued. The longer she thought, the more it seemed like Roy leaving was a good thing.

She dialed his number again, but she got the same result as all the other times she tried calling Roy. Pam couldn't believe that she had wrecked her marriage over lunch.

 _Okay, so tomorrow I talk to Jim. I can tell him about how Roy and I are having a fight, and ask for his help. Hopefully we can be friends again…_

She walked into the office, thinking more about how she was going to talk to Jim. When she finally saw him, she was too nervous to talk to him. Pam hadn't anticipated how difficult it would be to try to make contact with Jim again. Once, she got near his office she could hear Kelly blabbing about as usual. She tried to go farther, but couldn't.

 _He'll have to make copies eventually,_ Pam remembered. She sat at her desk and waited for him to come, but when he finally did, Michael started speaking before she could begin.

"Okay guys, how about Monday morning we all go out to lunch. Whaddya say, huh? Anybody? How about you, Jim? Oh, wait, I forgot you're leaving…"

Pam couldn't believe it. Had this been her fault? She immediately responded.

"Wait, Jim's leaving?" She tried to hide the worry in her voice. Many others continued talking, but was didn't hear anything. Her best friend was leaving. She knew that he was trying to block out what happened, but a small amount of hope remained: _maybe he will still talk to us- talk to me…_

She watched her best friend, until she finally heard Michael stopping everyone.

"Woah, woah, woah, you guys. Calm down- he found a different job. It's not because of Pam, Dwight."

Wait, did she hear that right? It wasn't because of her! That meant they could still be friends, even though Jim was leaving. She hoped that it was true, because she couldn't deal with losing her husband and her best friend in the same week.

Pam was still determined to talk to Jim, but about different things now. She would say how she still wanted to be friends, and tell him all about Roy.

 _Maybe then he would understand…_ Pam was thinking to herself.

Then, she got a call.

"Oh my God, um hi, Roy," she said, her nerves noticeable, even over the phone.

"Hey, babe. I'm sorry-" Roy began. But before he could finish, Pam cut him off.

"I'm sorry, too. I didn't mean it! I just was having a bad day at work, and-"

"Let me finish," Roy said aggressively. "I'm sorry, but this isn't gonna work out."

Pam sat in silence, crushed by what Roy just told her.

Roy continued, "I love you, but if you don't want to be with me, what's the point? So, since it's my apartment, I think it's best if you pack up your stuff and leave."

"Yeah, uh, okay," Pam replied. "Give me like, two days… Bye." She hung up the phone, still taken aback by what just happened. She and her husband were over, she had to find a new place to stay, and her best friend wanted nothing to do with her.

 _Well, it's worth a shot…_ she thought, devising a plan.

 _I guess talking to Jim tomorrow won't be happening…_


	5. Chilli's

**Note:** This chapter is different: it kinda shows Jim's POV and Pam's POV in the same section. I'm trying this out, so tell me which style you guys like better. Thanks! Also, sorry this one took so long to publish. I was volunteering all week.

 **CHAPTER FIVE:** Chilli's

"Jim? Oh my God, Jim!"

"Um, hi Pam… Is there something you need, or…?"

Pam had no idea how she would phrase the next sentence, or even worse, how to say it to Jim.

"Well, um… Wow, this is harder than I thought… Roy and I, we didn't work out…"

Jim was silent for a moment, only to reply with, "I'm sorry to hear that."

"Yeah… well I was wondering, if maybe I could stay with you for a while? Just until I get back on my feet. It would really mean a lot to me, Jim."

There was at least 10 seconds of silence.

"Um, sure, I guess. Are you coming tonight?" Jim finally replied.

"Roy said that I have a few days; maybe we could make arrangements at work tomorrow?" Pam was ecstatic, and showed it very clearly through the way she spoke. It hadn't crossed her mind that tomorrow was Jim's last day at the office, and that he probably wouldn't want to spend it talking with the girl who broke his heart about moving in with him.

"Um, okay. See you then," Jim replied. He was eager to get off the phone with Pam. What had he just agreed to? Images of Pam flashed through his mind; one was of her after she had just woken up, sleepy, and still in her pajamas; another was of her curled up on the couch, crying because of the "chick-flick" she was watching.

The reason Jim left Dunder Mifflin was to get away from Pam, so why was he now letting her invade his home, and become his roommate? He was only one day away from being free of her, and now she would be living him. He had to face one of his hardest challenges for who-knows-how-long, and he wasn't sure that he could.

Pam was busy packing her things, and stopped when she saw the picture of her and Roy on her nightstand. She decided to leave it for Roy, simply because she didn't want to be reminded of him. She had no idea where he was, what he was doing, or if he would even show up to work the next day.

At work the next day, Jim got there before Pam. He decided that it would be best if he simply left her a note, telling her to meet her at his car during lunch. Maybe he could take her to the Chilli's near there…

Pam arrived and saw the note he left her; she was thrilled that, though they may not be on the best terms, she and Jim were still friends. She went about her day as usual, until 10:30.

Roy walked in.

Pam stared at him, unaware of what she should do. He handed her a stack of papers, and without a word, left. Pam was apprehensive to look at what her husband had just handed her, but knew she would have to.

There, in her hands, was a stack of signed divorce papers.

She knew that it would be over soon, but this made it all too official. She was divorcing her husband, after such a short time. They didn't even have time to go on their honeymoon, and they were already separating. What would she tell her family? How?

She ran to Jim's office in the Annex before the tears could begin to fall. She quickly blurted out,

"Maybe we could go on that break now?" Jim saw the worry in her eyes, and knew that this was serious. He quickly grabbed his coat and hurried to his car. As they were entering the parking lot, Pam's face was flooded with tears. Jim stopped, turned to her, and asked,

"What's wrong?"

Pam, still crying, handed Jim the stack of papers. He was unaware of what he should do; there were no words to comfort her, or at least none that he could think of.

"Oh, um… Don't cry. It's alright," Jim said awkwardly. He tried to think of words to say, but none came to him.

Pam sniffled a bit, and as her crying slowly stopped, she said, "I didn't even love him. Wow, it feels good to say that out loud. I don't even love him? Why did I marry a man I don't love…?"

Jim, taken aback at Pam's recent statement, said, "Maybe we should talk about all this over lunch. I was thinking maybe we could go to Chilli's?" Pam nodded, and they got in the car and drove off. She was still sniffling a bit when they arrived, but had mostly taken care of herself.

"Hi, welcome to Chilli's!" said a cheerful woman at the door. "A table for two?" Jim nodded, and she showed them to their table.

"Alright, so what first- Roy or living together?" asked Jim. Pam smiled a bit when she saw the light in his eyes and heard the cheerfulness in his speech.

"Let's go with the happy one: living together," she replied. Pam wanted to get Roy out of her head, even if it was only for a while.

"Good choice," said Jim. "I was thinking the same thing. So I have a spare bedroom that I was thinking you could live in. I have a bathroom upstairs and a bathroom downstairs, so we won't have to share one. Do you know how much more packing you have to do?"

"Um, I could be finished by tonight, if I get help," she said, obviously hinting for support from Jim.

"Beesly, what will you be like when you're living on your own?" Jim asked with a smile.

They chatted for a bit, until Pam looked to her right and saw the small packet of papers next to her.


	6. Moving Day

**A/N:** I didn't hear that this style was bad, so I'll try another chapter like I did last time. Please tell me if you don't like this, or if you like this better. Thanks!

 **CHAPTER SIX:** Moving Day

"I never really loved him, but every time I tried to end things between us, he wouldn't let me. He always told me, 'I'll change! I'll change for you, babe!' But look where we are now. I just wish I had found a way to break it off sooner.'"

Pam couldn't believe she just said that. She wasn't thinking about what was happening, but instead just spoke without thinking.

Jim, hearing this, had no response. _What am I supposed to say? 'Oh, too bad you didn't love your husband, but it doesn't matter now! You're getting a divorce, and you have to crash at my place because you have nowhere else to stay!'_ So, he didn't say anything. He tried to busy himself by looking at his phone, but was astonished at what he saw.

"Wow! It's already 4:30. I guess there's no use in going back to the office now; let's go pack, Beesly."

They got into Jim's car and went towards Pam's house, or rather her ex-husband Roy's house. When they got inside, Jim saw many boxes by the door, and heard voices towards the back. They cautiously followed the murmured voices, until they saw Roy and his friend Darryl in the kitchen; Roy was sitting on the counter, drinking a beer, and Darryl was putting the last plates in the cupboard into a box labeled "KITCHEN."

"Hey, what are you doing?" Pam asked. Both Roy and Darryl turned to see her, accompanied by Jim.

"What's _he_ doing here?" Roy said, looking at Jim the whole time.

"He's helping me pack. He said I could stay at his place. Why do you care?" Pam responded.

"Oh, so you're dating now? It didn't even take you a week to move on from me? Well we all know you had a crush on him from the start," Roy continued. "Well don't worry; you two love birds can be together, now that I'm out of the way."

"Hey, you're the one who brought up divorce!" Pam shouted.

"Okay, guys, let's calm down. Roy, she needed a place to stay, and I have a spare bedroom. She'll be gone in a few weeks, she just needs a place to stay while she gets back on her feet," Jim said, trying to calm everyone down.

"Hey, if I'm the one moving, how come you're here packing" asked Pam. She had noticed how empty the house was, with the exception of cardboard boxed scattered across the floor.

"I can't stay in this house! Are you kidding me? This was _our_ house; there are just too many memories here."

Pam was outraged, and made no efforts in trying to hide it.

"So you're gonna make me move out of here for what reason?"

"Well, technically it's my apartment…" Roy said softly.

"You said it yourself- this was _our_ place! Why can't I live here?"

This time, Darryl stepped in.

"Okay, well you see, Roy's the one whose name is on the papers, which makes it his house. If you wanna buy it after him, no problem. But he has to sell it, which means you have to get out."

Pam stuttered, trying to think of something to say to this, but couldn't. She simply muttered in a soft voice,

"Jim, let's grab my boxes. There aren't many; it will probably only take a few trips."

After a while, they loaded up all the boxes into Jim's car, and they drove to his condo to unpack. When they got there, Pam was still furious.

"Why couldn't he just sign the lease over to me?" She shouted, loud enough for the whole neighborhood to hear.

"It's alright- you can get a better place than that. I honestly don't know what Roy was thinking, getting a place that small."

"One of his friends lived in the same building…" Pam said. "Every time I tried to tell him to move, he would bring up his friend Jared, and how he lived alone. I can't believe I didn't stand up to him more."

"Well, it's over now. Let's get these boxes inside."

Jim showed Pam around, and helped her unpack a few things before he went to bed. The next morning, Jim realized, he no longer worked at Dunder Mifflin; he may never have to enter that simple office complex ever again. This thought both intrigued and saddened Jim, but overall, he was more joyous about his job than he was before.

When Jim went downstairs, he heard what he believed to be muffled crying. When he went to investigate, he saw Pam, pen in hand, crying over her divorce papers. Jim decided it would be better if he left her alone; this was a difficult process for Pam, and he wasn't sure that butting in would help. Instead, he went to the kitchen and made a pot of coffee.

When he had just made himself breakfast (toast and a fried egg), Pam walked into the kitchen.

"Well, it's official- Roy and I are divorced. I shouldn't be feeling so sad. It's just that I've spent so much of my life with him, and it's gonna be so weird without him."

Jim looked at her awkwardly, mumbling the words,

"Yeah… Hey, do you want breakfast?"

Pam smiled. "Sure," she said. "What do you have?"

They chatted while Jim was cooking Pam a small breakfast of oatmeal and her favorite yogurt, mixed-berry, which Jim bought specifically for her.

Pam seemed to have forgotten Roy entirely. She and Jim were talking as though they were at Pam's desk.

 _Pam's desk…_ Jim thought. _I'll never see Pam's desk again…_

Meanwhile, Pam was thinking similar thoughts.

 _Do I keep pranking Dwight? The office if going to be so different without Jim…_

Jim tried to bury his thought into the back of his mind, trying to enjoy the moment. It was difficult, though, when he was talking to the person he was trying to forget…


	7. The First Day

A/N: I think I've called Jim's place a house and an apartment so far, but after watching some reruns, I noticed that it's actually a house… Oops! Sorry! Also, I don't know if Pam and Roy lived in an apartment, but I've been calling it an apartment, so I'll stick with it.

Okay, so I kinda merged the two methods I've written with so far, but it's much more… normal… than the first one. Tell me what you think in the reviews!

This is getting pretty long, but one last thing: I'm sorry to say that this is mainly a filler chapter. Don't worry, exciting things happen in the next one!

 **CHAPTER SEVEN** : The First Day

It was a pleasant weekend; Jim went out with his friends, while Pam watched movies and unpacked. They both were doing their separate things, but it was still difficult for Jim to come home and see Pam on the couch, lazily eating microwaved popcorn. Pam didn't find this situation strange at all: to her it was simply like staying at her friend's house.

The next Monday, however, was different. Jim got ready for work as usual, and seemed to forget that Pam was living in his house until he went downstairs and saw Pam on the couch, watching the news while drinking a cup of coffee.

"I hope you don't mind," she said, gesturing to her coffee. "I just figured that you would have some too, so I made a pot."

Jim smiled and said, "it's fine. Did you ever get your car back from Roy?"

I forgot the car. How could I forget to get my car back?

"Um, no... Do you think maybe you could give me a ride to the old place? I still have my keys."

Jim replied with, "yeah, sure- no problem." Jim was fine with giving her a ride, as long as it wasn't to the office; he didn't want to see his old office-mates, and giving her a ride there would guarantee a visit from one of his old coworkers.

So, Jim and Pam set off towards Roy's old apartment before they each went to their offices. When they arrived at the old apartment, there was no car in the spot marked for Roy's old place.

"Wh- where did my car go?" Pam asked in a worried tone.

"It's alright- I can give you a ride to the office, and you can ask Roy when you get there," Jim responded. While he was extremely apprehensive to take Pam to the office, he didn't want her to worry; she was already going through an extremely difficult time, and he didn't want her to be late for work just because he was too selfish to take her to work.

They loaded into his car again, and they drove off. Jim was dreading nearing his old workplace.

What am I gonna do, drop her off a block from here? It's fine; I'll be in and out in a few seconds.

He was not "in and out in a few seconds."

As he was driving into the parking lot, he told Pam, "if you need me to pick you up, feel free to call me."

Pam nodded and stepped out of the car. Unfortunately for Jim, Angela stepped out of her car at the same moment.

"Whore…" she mumbled under her breath.

"What was that, Angela?" Pam asked in a firm tone.

"You really get around, don't you? Less than a week after you leave your husband and you're already with another man."

Pam looked at Jim, shocked. The commotion outside caused the camera crew to run down, just in time to catch Jim. They insisted on interviewing him.

"Hey, I have work to go to, and it's not here, so if you'll excuse me…"

He began to drive away, but the camera crew followed his car away. He knew he would be portrayed poorly on the documentary because of the incident, but he didn't care; he had a new job to go to, and didn't want to be late on his first day.

Pam walked first into the office, because she didn't want to be late for work. She sat down, determined to talk to Roy at her lunch break. Now that they were divorced, she would need her car back. She and Roy both had their own cars, and she had bought hers before they were married, or even engaged. After nixing the idea of talking to him after work, Pam decided to talk to Roy at his lunch break; she would see him walk in, and would go to the break room a few minutes later. She didn't want to be too obvious, as- to her knowledge- no one in the office knew they were divorced, not just separated, and she wanted things to stay that way. Eventually the word would get around, but Pam wanted to delay that for as long as she could.

:::::

Jim walked into his new office for the first time. He was nervous, but he didn't want to show it, so he walked in as though he had just walked into Dunder Mifflin. However, this office was nothing like Dunder Mifflin; the people were actually working, and when the manager came out to greet him, he did so in a civilized manner- nothing like Michael Scott.

"Hi, my name is Harvey Owston, and I'm the manager here. We're so excited to have you working here with us," he said in a calm voice.

"Hi, I'm Jim Halpert," Jim said as he shook his new manager's hand. He was actually excited to work in a place that got things done.

"Well, Jim, let me show you to your desk," said Harvey as he lead Jim towards the back of the clean workspace. He passed many desks, all arranged in rows, filled with people, busy calling clients and filling in spreadsheets. Jim felt again like he did in high school: he didn't know anybody, and was quite awkward. However, Jim was determined to do well at this job, unlike his last one. He wanted to actually get work done, instead of goofing off and playing pranks the whole time.

That motivation wouldn't last long.


End file.
